Iker Lecuona has finished with a November that he will remember for the rest of his life. This is indeed where his career took a decisive turning point, a trajectory which took him directly into MotoGP which was only a fantasy until recently. But here he is now in the KTM clan which he entered directly during an FP1. Giving a more than satisfactory impression, the 3-year-old Tech19 driver only needed a few laps in the rain to perfect his experience. The skies of Jerez gave him this opportunity before pronouncing the winter break…
Iker Lecuona has definitely come out of anonymity. After a Valencia Grand Prix where he showed real abilities to adapt to a MotoGP, the Spaniard then continued to delight his new boss Hervé Poncharal with a decidedly hollow nose. His last outing of the year on the RC16 gave him the opportunity to ride on a wet track. Sensations that he summarizes as follows: “ the rain tires are amazing », he enthused. “ With them, you can almost brake like in the dry, these tires are much better than in Moto2, the difference is big. It's crazy. I was driving with little engine power, so the electronics weren't really working. »
« After a Grand Prix and two tests, I got used to my new role ", said the pilot Tech3. " I know I have to work a lot this winter, but first I need a vacation. Thanks to the Valencia Grand Prix, I was able to cover more kilometers and work more with the team. There are so many people on the team, it's incredible. »
« I spoke to Pol Espargaró on Saturday evening, but never with Dani Pedrosa or Brad Binder. I prefer to look at myself, I only compared my data with Pol's. He is very fast and way ahead of me. But my times are getting better and better » ends a lecuona ambitious who was able to reduce his gap from 2,8 to 2,0 seconds with the reference time during the second and final day of testing in Jerez: “ for next year I know I have to improve in all points, which is clear as long as you don't finish first »
For its part, Hervé Poncharal thus evaluated his nugget: “ I think it was very good that we had the chance to do several laps with Iker in the wet and I have to say I was really impressed. I don't know if it's the Supermoto experience, but he really likes the Michelin in the wet, he really likes the KTM RC16 in these conditions. I think he had a lot of fun and the lap time was very good too. We have seen that the three rookies in the MotoGP category are quite fast and I think there will be an interesting fight next year. Of course, Iker will be ready to fight for the crown. »
Tuesday results:
Results of the two days of testing in Jerez:
